“I left the class for five minutes, I can’t remember why. I had a text asking me what mine my father worked in. That’s when I guessed something was wrong.

“We could see the helicopters flying towards the mountain.

“Then my mother came to the school and told me something had happened at the mine. She said I could go home or go to my grandparents – I chose to go to my grandparents.

“I was in my grandmother’s house when I was told a body had been found.”

“Problems in mines hadn’t been heard of for years. I never expected anything to go wrong but there’s some things you can’t control.

“When were waiting, I got no sleep for two days. The family were in constant tears.”

Alex said the tragedy has affected his schoolwork over the past few years and he is now doing his GCSEs... trying to find the time to study while also keeping his mind on the Swansea Crown Court trial.

He said: “The trial will give me answers.

“I want to do a course in catering.”

Asked about mining, he said: “When it was younger I knew it was something my grandfather did. When I was younger I thought you just went in and did your stuff and walked out and that there were no problems. Since then I’ve heard a lot different.”

Asked about his relationship with his father, Alex said: “He was a brilliant, kind, brave man who would do anything to help me out and he always up for a laugh.

“We had a brilliant relationship – he was my best friend, we were like two peas in a pod.

“He always used to take me to rugby, we would go out on the motorbikes together, we would go caravanning. We would do literally anything together – as long as it was me and him. We would just enjoy our times together.

“I miss him more than anything – I spent 90% of my time with him and if we weren’t together we would be planning what we would do in the years ahead.

“He always told me he was proud of me. I hope he still is, proud that I am trying to get on in life with him always in my mind.”

Garry Jenkins one of the 4 miners who died following a mine collapse in the Swansea Valley, South Wales.

He added: “I’ll sit in a corner on my own sometimes and have a little speak with him in my head.”

Asked if he visited his father’s grave, he said: “No, it’s not something I can do. I want to remember my father for the person he was, not as a grave.”

Speaking about his rugby team in the Dulais Valley, Alex said: “The people around me including the rugby boys have helped me more than anything. They have spurred me on.”

And of the huge global reaction to the Gleision Colliery tragedy, he said: “It comforted me a lot knowing that people were offering support, helping us. We’ve had letters from around the world saying they can relate to us through their parents and grandparents.”

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